On Feb. 4, the XRP Ledger activated Permissioned Domains with 91% validator approval. The upgrade adds on-ledger credentials to gate access, enabling regulated trading, payments, and future lending on a public chain. Data from RWA.xyz places tokenized real-world assets at about $24.11 billion, highlighting the feature’s institutional focus.

On Feb. 3, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin outlined a revised roadmap that de-emphasizes "branded shard" rollups and questions the role of corporate-controlled layer-2 networks like Coinbase-backed Base. Base, launched in August 2023, has secured over $11 billion in value and generated more than $75 million in 2025 revenue, but faces growing pressure from Ethereum's push for lower L1 costs and higher decentralization standards. The network's reliance on centralized sequencing and upgrade control now sits at the center of a broader debate about long-term economic sustainability and trustless scaling.

Hyperliquid’s HYPE token has climbed about 71% in the past two weeks to a recent high of $35, even as global risk assets lost roughly $6 trillion in early 2026. The perpetuals-focused DEX is seeing surging volume, buybacks and new products like HIP-3 RWAs and the upcoming HIP-4 outcome markets, while a Feb. 6 unlock of 9.92 million HYPE worth around $335 million looms as a key test.

According to CryptoSlate data, Bitcoin trades near $78,000, more than 38% below October's peak above $126,000, while f2pool's Feb. 2 dashboard shows miner revenue around $0.034 per TH/day at roughly 890 EH/s. With hashrate down about 12% since last November and some operators redirecting infrastructure to AI, margins for many rigs have compressed to historical floors.

On Jan. 30, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson said he signed an agreement to integrate USDCx, a Circle-linked stablecoin, into the network. The initiative aims to channel sustained on-chain dollar liquidity for DeFi, though rollout timing and scope remain unconfirmed. USDCx is issued on a partner chain and backed one-to-one via Circle's xReserve, which is designed to reduce reliance on traditional bridges.

Gold hit a record $5,594.82 per ounce before slipping to about $5,330, a 4.7% pullback, while Bitcoin fell 7% to roughly $82,381. With volatility climbing as GVZ rose from 30.01 on Jan. 23 to 39.67 on Jan. 28, traders are evaluating whether crowded gold positioning unwinds into Bitcoin or reflects broader macro pressure.

Bitcoin has fallen nearly 7% in the last 24 hours to $82,513 and is on track for a fourth consecutive monthly decline, with long traders seeing more than $750 million in liquidations. Analysts are now focused on an $81,000 support band, warning that a breakdown could trigger a deeper capitulation similar to prior downturns.

On Jan. 23, BlackRock filed for the iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, which would track BTC via IBIT while distributing option premiums from selling covered calls, typically overwriting 25%–35% of net assets. IBIT's scale—$69.2 billion AUM and $62.816 billion cumulative net inflows—positions BlackRock to mass-produce this volatility-as-income strategy despite warnings that crowded call selling may compress premiums.

On Jan. 27, Lookonchain identified three whale addresses withdrawing about $14.33 million of tokenized gold (XAUT and PAXG) from Bybit, Gate, and MEXC while Bitcoin slowed into a narrow range. In a Jan. 26 note, Bitwise Europe reported $1.811 billion weekly outflows from global crypto ETPs, framing the gold bid as hedging rather than an exit from BTC.